NevadaMoparGuy
Well-Known Member
I'm in the Sierra nevada mountain range, dont know what it's like out there, I drive like the old man I am. Really mellow on it, kids driving it until we get his duster squared away
Looking for advice. Want to build a Duster to run on a budget.
- Thread starter JNotFound
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Well, with a low deck like the 383 and 400 there are affordable solutions. The Hedman and similarly bent headers for B bodies works. Some have even found them to bolt right in. Others have had to dent tubes here and there, since none of these cars is like the next.
Thank you all for the replies. I'm going to work on getting the car and a donor truck or jeep for a 5.9 magnum and I'll keep you guys updated. Sorry I've been pretty absent today. I spent 5-6 hours working on my truck's suspension, trying to fix the death wobble, only managed to get like 25% done. Tried to save a buck by pressing out the lower ball joint and it kicked my ***. I got it though, nearly broke my breaker bar.
one of the biggest challenges of a BB swap is all the peripherals. markeplace & et al is always rife with big blocks for like 1K, which is enticing. but then everything else bleeds you one used parts purchase and summit order at a time...
Why skimp on building a car in memory of your dad, only a premium build would be good enough for my dad, I'd go through every length to make it happen or I wouldn't do it.
HankRearden
Well-Known Member
Yep. The piddly **** I had not planned for just ate up my budget and time.
Meanwhile Ive done running small block and 904 swaps in a weekend.
I also had the benefit of working in a fully stocked six bay shop next door to a parts store wen I did the 440 swap.
I just need it running, guy. I have the rest of my life to get it perfect. I have a family of 5 on a single income. Why not make memories with my kids wrenching on it while they grow up? I don't have room to store it off the street that isn't on grass right now and it's not something I want rotting away on grass. I just really don't see getting a better example for the money anytime soon, prices just keep going up
How do you feel about the small OD trans, the 904 variant. A-500?
Bobzilla
Well-Known Member
Nothing at all wrong with this plan. I would do it the same way. My first “hotrod” was complete pile of rusty junk that I bought with no engine or transmission. That car was so much fun to drive but it was just as much fun getting it together and running. The memories are worth the effort.
To answer your original question of "Want to build a Duster on a budget", and your second statement "want to make memories": buy a slant 6 for $100 and put it in and go. Your wife and kids will have zero cares at all what's under the hood, or who will be impressed at a stop light, when you're all out tooling around and having fun in the car. Take the $3900 you saved on trying to make a tire burner and go out for ice cream.
Nice ride. Here is what I have done in the past. Same boat as yours.
‘71 Duster, originally a /6, manual 4 corner drums, brakes and power steering.
Found a good diner car.
‘76 Chrysler Cordoba, 400 P code, 727. (9-1/4/3.23, rear and not used in this car.)
I had a driveshaft laying around to cut at a shop. Installed a gear set, headers, 4bbl intake and earlier year TQ I had laying around. Also a electronic ignition and a open air cleaner.
For a dead on its heels year 400, the torque got the car moving really well. The loose gear set was great for short jumps light to light but side road limited.
4.88’s & 28” tires. But it was a scream to drive.
Your idea of raising a truck for the 5.9 will make an EZ 300hp with headers, 4bbl intake, 600 cfm carb. Upgrade the distributor and ignition box and your set.
With a regular 3 speed transmission, 3.55’s and down work well for the street. a 2.76 Hwy gear set will make it a go anywhere car.
Use of an OD trans will do well in waking it up with the transmissions low first gear and the OD working with 3.55’s will end up with a (3.55 X .69 =) 2.45 gear ratio. That will keep the rpm’s low for the Hwy.!
Vinny
Well-Known Member
Ask for the VIN to see if it was a 6 or a V8 car.
Jarlaxle
Well-Known Member
Qjet is an awesome street carb-but be aware it won't fit many of the intakes (including the Edelbrock Air Gap and I suspect most Chinese clones). It should fit a Mopar M1 if you find one.
The secrets to A518/46RH/46RE longevity are cooling and fluid. First, use ONLY ATF+4. Second, you want to run a BIG cooler.
No, bigger. Keep going. No, bigger than that, try the RV section. Those two things had 46REs living 200,000 miles in 15-passenger vans in city use.
Also, for a swap, I recall the OD automatics NEED the larger-diameter cooler lines. They have to keep the full diameter.
Great advice on the trans cooling. The cooler they run the happier and longer life they live. Shift kits are also good for longer life.
To the OP. The spreadbore carb intakes are a bit harder to find in the “Best Intake” category. The Performer, the Chinese person or Action Plus are very similar in performance for street duty lite strip. You can get the car going really well with these intakes. These are LA head intakes which will take re drilling the Magnum head to accept. Stick with the Edelbrock RPM.
Racing single planes are limited to the MoPar M1, a pricey expenditure for sure because they are very hard to find (or the older Holley Strip Dominator for LA engines). But that’s it. They also don’t become needed until your cam is around 250/255 intake duration. These are race intakes and well suited for et’s in the low 11’s and down and light weight cars and numeric high axle ratios.
MoPar speed tips even use a dual plane with a cam at 250@,050 intake duration.
For your Magnum engine, the RPM is what you should be looking at. The MoPar M1 dual plane intake is crazy hard to find and costly when you do find it. I generally don’t recommend it.
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Dragonbat13
Well-Known Member
Do the ram truck thing. but if you can try to find an pre magnum roller cam engine with an A998 or a999 trans. put a used intake, carb and recurved distributor.
But get it running with whatever small block trans combo you find. the overdrive magnum will be best, but the earlier drivetrain will be great too.
good luck.
But get it running with whatever small block trans combo you find. the overdrive magnum will be best, but the earlier drivetrain will be great too.
good luck.
You are everything that’s wrong with this hobby today. Unfinished projects in garages help no one and teach nothing. Better a not perfect car on the road than an unfinished “premium build”. Or even a finished build that just collects dust because the owner is too scared to drive it and screw it up.
100%.
Your car doesn’t have to be perfect to make memories with your kids. “Premium builds” collect dust in garages and on trailers, they don’t get wrenched on by kids learning skills and they don’t get driven around town, break down, get fixed and driven again. Some of my best memories are literally me breaking down in an old car and what I, my dad or my friends and I did to get back on the road and fix the car again. Some important lessons learned about all sorts of things.
Driving old cars and turning wrenches makes memories, not cars sitting around collecting dust or taking to the crusty curmudgeons at car shows that freak out if your kid bumps into their car. Drive, wrench, repeat.
Yes start with what's easy
Make it go
Than you can build it from there
Make it go
Than you can build it from there
Just because you’ve done something a long time doesn’t mean you’re not an a-hole for telling a guy not to build a car with his kids in memory of his father if he can’t afford to do a “premium build”.
Maybe your father was the problem, I know mine would be a lot more proud to see me out having fun in something less than a “premium build” than he would be of me giving up the whole thing because I couldn’t afford to have some show quality garage queen. But that’s probably because my old man cared more about the experience than the money.
So yeah, telling a guy not to build a car with his kids to honor his father because he doesn’t have your kind of money and suggesting his father wouldn’t be honored by an inexpensive build makes you an a-hole and what’s wrong with the hobby in my book.
Go ahead talk him into building a car with worn out parts just so he can drive his kids around to honor his father.
Premium to me is replacing all the rubber brake lines and brake parts first, we'll get it running after all the frontend parts are thoroughly checked as well, just a small list of things to be gone through before even thinking about putting a license plate on it.
PS I'm sorry your dad taught you mediocrity was OK, my old man taught me paint and fancy wheels doesn't make it reliable. But it sure is nice for the finishing touch. lol
Johnny Dart
Well-Known Member
Plus you might even be able to get the thing to stop.
That should be enough to get the chassis up to snuff and sporting some decent tires.
Realistically you're looking at twice your budget to get a reliable running driver if you're having to do an engine.
i think 4K is a big stretch to put a car like that on the road safely and reliably. especially with having to do a motor.
i think the guy needs to reevaluate the situation and set more realistic expectations or budget.
Best of all worlds is to be able to work on it and be able to drive it at the same time!!! Keep the down time to a minimum! It can be done IF you are not trying to b build the perfect BJ car.
FB is full of cars that someone took apart, put it in a dozen boxes, it sits for years till the wife says "get rid of it or else!"
$4000 budget? I figure that amount for just odds and ends!!
FB is full of cars that someone took apart, put it in a dozen boxes, it sits for years till the wife says "get rid of it or else!"
$4000 budget? I figure that amount for just odds and ends!!
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